Mexico Trucker Online

Not surprising, and the sad thing is, he’ll probably win. OOIDA reportsl

OOIDA member sues New Mexico troopers for racial profiling
Looking around the port of entry office, Curtis Blackwell noticed something common among the drivers waiting to talk to officers at the Port of Entry in Lordsburg, NM.

Like him, most of the other drivers were black.

Blackwell had been placed out of service for 24 hours after police found unopened beer and liquor in his truck’s tool box accessible from outside the truck. The officer accused him of being on drugs, and made him go through a series of sobriety tests on that mid-August day in 2008.

Blackwell – a veteran of the road for more than 40 years – said tension between truckers and officers at the Port of Entry was palpable.

“Coming from L.A., I can tell when a cop is trying to get me,” Blackwell told Land Line. “I thought, ‘They’re only pulling over black drivers!’ ”

Blackwell, OOIDA Member from Altadena, CA, filed a lawsuit against the New Mexico Motor Transportation Division in early May. The suit names three state troopers for allegedly targeting commercial vehicles driven by black drivers for inspections, searches and detentions in Lordsburg.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court in New Mexico, and seeks compensatory and punitive damages, the removal of an alcohol citation from Blackwell’s record, and a declaration that the citation is unconstitutional.

READ THE REST HERE

Last I heard, carrying booze in your truck without a BOL was not permitted and after 40 years, you’d think this bozo would know it too.

Something we’ll keep and eye on.